Improvement in earth-closets



delfini lteres stent )hline BENJAMIN Arrnonr eoULD FuLLnaor wns'r lwXBUnv,` MASSACHU- SETTS.

Letters Patent No. 97,495, lated December 7 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN EARTH-CLOSETS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all persons to whom. these presents may come The closet hereinafter described, in its general featnres is analogousto the wellnkuown earth-closet invented by Rev. Henry Moule, of Fordiugton vicarage, Dorsetshire, England,

Instead ofthe vibrating hopper, as used by the' s aid Moule, I employ a dumping-carriage, of a peculiar construction, such Ycarriage being supported ou rails or ways, and provided with mechanism for imparting to it, bythe movements of the cover of the seat, and by a weight, ,rectilinear movements to and from the hopper, or earth-reservoir, as occasion may require.

In the drawings- A denotes the frame of the closet; `B, the seat; .G, the cover thereof;

D, the earth-reservoir; and

E, the platform on which the hod Vor vessel for ,re-

ceiving the cxcrement and covering-material or. earth is placed.

The dumping-carriage is shown at F, it being a box,

supported by. four wheels, el, upon two parallel rails,

or ways, b l@arranged below the'earth-reservoir, in manner as exhibited in the drawings.

' The carriage is open at top, and has a dischargeoriiice, o, made through the front portion of its bottorn d.

A door, fr, to such orifice e, is connected tothe bottom` el, by hinges/e, so as to open downward.

i Furthermore, there is applied to the said bottom el, against its under side,a slide-bar or door-supporter, f, such bar being arranged inguides g g, projecting from the bottom el.

While being pushed forward against the door, the

s slide-bar will elevate the door, so as to cause it to close the opening, and while itis underneath the door,`

such slide-barV will retain .the'door in a horizontal posi'- tion.

There is within the carriage a slide, or gauge, G, provided with adjusting-devices,by which its distance from the front end of the carriage may be regulated l and fixed at pleasure, in order to gauge the size of the space within the carriage into which the earth is to be discharged from the reservoir. t

This slide or gauge is a metallic plate, bent at a right angle, a part, al, of it extending down into the carriage.

The upper or horizontal portion b' serves to close the lower end of the reservoir or hopper, at such times as the earth-receiving space of the carriage may not be underneath the lower end of the hopper.

At its rear, the gauge G is bent downward, as shown at c', and has an index-bar, d', project-ed horizontally Vfrom it, alongside of one side of the carriage.

This index-bar has a stud, or stop, e,` extended down from it. v

A series of holes, arranged in the side of the carriage, in manner as shown at f', enables a person, by

lneansof, a pin or plug inserted in either of them, and

by the index-bar and its stop e', to adjust the front parte' of the gauge G at such a distance from the front end of the carriage as circumstances may require.

The said carriage is to be so connected with the lid or cover/O as to be retracted whilethe cover may be in'the act of being raised, and by the force applied to the cover to raise it from a horizontal into an upright position or thereabout.

The connection of the carriage with the cover is also to be such as to cause the carriage tobe drawn or moved forward during a depression or downward movement of the said cover.

.To these ends, Vthe carriage, by means of cords h h,

`led around pulleys o. o, is connected with two qnadrant-arms, tl, extended down from the cover.

A weight, k, suspended from a line, l, fastened to the rear of the carriage, and ledover a gude-pnlley or through a guide, fm, serves to retract the calriage.

On depressing the cdver, the carriage will' be drawn forward. On raising the cover, the weight lc will retract, or' draw the carriage back t-o its rearmost position under .the reservoir.

The slide-bar fis connected with a stationary stop, or standard, p, by means of a line, g. During an advance of the carriage, the slide-bar will be moved by and with it, until estopped by the rope or line g, by the latter being drawn taut. The carriage will continue its advance until it may have moved on the bar suili.

ciently to move the door or valve of the carriage beyond the said bar, in which .case the door will fall into treat, will force the door` against the slide-bar, which will press up and close the door,and hold it closed nntil the carriage may be again advanced, and the slide-bar be estopped by its line or rope.

Within the carriagev F is what I term` the scatterer, S, which consists of a horizontal shaft, provided with a series of wings extended from it. This shaft is supported at its oppositeends, so,as to'be capable of freely revolving. During the discharge of earth out of the carriage, the seatterer S will be revolved, or will operate to separate and' scatter the earth, so that in falling it may be diffused over the v excrement to be covered by it. If desirable, this scat- 'terer may have applied to ita mechanism for revolving it at the proper time.

I herein make no claim to the combination oi' a hop per and seat, with a'rotary box, and one or more levers and a weight, combined with a pull-up, or handle, such as is used in water-closets, such having been employedby the said Moule in his earth-closets.

I claim- The dumpingcaniage F, as made with or having the gauge G, the openingl c, and the ,d'oor 1', arranged as described, and as combined with the lid or cover of the seat, by means as set forth, whereby such carriage, by and during the movements of the seat, may be caused to operate as explained.

, Also, the combination of the index-bard and its stop .e, an'd the series of holes. f, with the gauge G andthe dumping-carriage, as set forth. Also, the combination of the door-supporter f, and its.'operative mechanism, viz, the stop p and line g, with the dumping-carriage, combined with the hopper and seat, seas to operate therewith, substantially as set forth.

Also, the combination'of the scatterer S with the dumping-carriage and the hopper, applied to the seat and its cover, and arranged to operate therewith, as

. hereinbefore explained.

BENJAMIN .APTHORP GOULD FULLER.

Witnesses: I

R. H. EDDY,

J. R. SNOW. l 

